East Hampton To Host Regional CL&P Work Center

February 06, 2014|By ERIK HESSELBERG, Special to The Courant, The Hartford Courant

EAST HAMPTON – Northeast Utilities on Thursday shed a little light on plans to close four regional work centers and consolidate those operations in East Hampton, saying the relocation of at least one office will begin this summer.

Mitch Gross, a spokesman for CL&P and Yankee Gas, said that CL&P's Willimantic office is slated to close June 30, and some of the 66 employees who now work there will relocate to East Hampton.

As to when regional works centers in Middletown, Lebanon and South Windsor will be consolidated, Gross would only say "sometime in 2014."

The consolidation is part of NU's efforts to reduce costs and create efficiencies in the wake of the April 2012 merger with energy giant NSTAR. The utility is seeking to deliver an estimated $780 million in merger-related cost savings to shareholders and customers.

In all, NU has about 20 these regional offices.

The move to East Hampton and what it will mean for the police department – which leases parking from CL&P – has caused some anxiety in town.

The 15,000-square-foot CL&P building that will serve as the new regional work center sits behind the police department and town hall complex along Route 66. Some 10 cruisers, the department's entire fleet, now park in the lot. The police department has leased the lot from CL&P for more than 20 years.

Town Manager Mike Maniscalco said he has concerns not only about the loss of police parking lot, but the increase in traffic on the shared police department and CL&P driveway. "The concern is that the additional cars could cause problems with police cars getting out," Maniscalco said. "That said, we're ecstatic about CL&P coming to our community."

East Hampton Police Chief Sean Cox said CL&P has not said when it wants to take over the parking lot; he said an alternate lot has been secured for police vehicles.

Meanwhile, some are wondering whether recent town council meetings in executive session to discuss a possible land acquisition have something to do the police department's parking problem and the desire for a new headquarters.

The present 2,500-square-foot police station, located in the basement of town hall, was built in the 1970s and is considered inadequate. Some years ago, officials were eying a former factory building on Skinner Road for a new station but plans were eventually dropped.

"The issue of the police department has been on the front burner for quite a while," Maniscalco said. He declined to comment on specific plans.